Today is all about recapping my New York Fashion Week looks + tips!
1. Your travel tribe: pick the right people to attend NYFW with.
2. Location is key: find the right hotel within a close proximity to NYFW events.
3. Getting invites + navigating shows: recap my tips + tricks here.
4. Style is everything: challenge yourself and mix up prints and patterns to stand out!
5. Expect the unexpected: no matter what, things will happen out of your control. Be prepared.
6. Be fearless: enough said.
7. It is not a competition.

In my first year of blogging I have witnessed how competitive this community can be. While I believe it is good to challenge one another, we as women need to do a much better job of empowering one another instead of being each other’s competition. It doesn’t matter how many followers you have, or how many shows you get into. It’s about being supportive of one another, working together to create a collaborative community and building your brand and relationships! If you attend New York Fashion Week with a competitive mindset, you’ll walk away sad and disappointed that you missed out on the opportunity to bond with fellow bloggers and brands!

Thanks for following along this past week. Please feel free to leave any unanswered questions and comments below. Who’s attending New York Fashion Week this winter? xx

Hi friends, happy Monday! I trust you all had a great weekend! It was the first time I’ve been home in a few weeks, so I enjoyed relaxing with Chris and Becks while trying to knock out some items on my lengthy to-do list. Anyways, so excited you are back for a few more days of my New York Fashion Week recap, I hope you caught up on all the posts. But if not, there’s still time!

If you have been following along, you are either interested in traveling to the Big Apple for Fashion Week, or curious in what happens behind the scenes. Hopefully I’ve been able to answer all your questions and give you some insight. So I’d like to take the opportunity to tell you to be fearless. In a world where we are constantly fueld by the fear of “what ifs” and the unknown, this is a great chance for me to tell you to be fearless in the pursuit of your dreams, whether its to attend next year or to introduce yourself to your favorite blogger crush! Now is as good of a time as any. Chances are very high that you will encounter others in similar sitations, which will give you an opportunity to connect one on one and grow individually. But let me remind you, not everyone is who they ‘post’ to be in person. I say that because one of the things I was looking forward to this trip, was connecting in person with those bloggers I worked with over the last year. As I mentioned before, I have been blessed with the opportunity to virtually connect with over 500 bloggers and shop owners this past year through hosting giveaways. When I found out that several of those girls, along with some other’s that inspire me daily through their Insta feeds and blogs, were attending NYFW, I made a mental note of who I had to introduce myself to. I won’t mention any names, but there were too many people that I walked away disappointed from. Either they weren’t personable, came across as very standoffish or had a sense of arrogance that I couldn’t handle. I’d like to think I’m a very easy person to communicate with, and a pretty good judge of character, but man…was I dissapointed. They weren’t at all what they ‘post’ to be via social media. But on the other hand, there were a handful of women I met that were just as fun and encouraging in person as they appear on the internet! And those are the individuals that made me so excited to come home and get back to work.

Please keep in mind, everyone has their off days. There is always a chance that I caught someone at a bad time or off their game. But with that being said, I think its a great time to tell you how important it is for YOU to always be the best version of your self via the internet and social settings. Whether you’re attending a large event as a guest, our corresponding to someone via email, your interaction is vital to your brands success. You don’t ever want to be that person that is viewed as not nice or friendly. Don’t be that girl.

Tuesday was the last full day in the city, so we wrapped up a few meetings which included a visit to the Gumuchian offices! This beautiful family including Anita Gumuchian and her two daughters, design every piece for their collections. From the selection of diamonds to the manufacturing in their New York offices, these women do it all! Aftewards, we did some shopping on Madison Ave like true tourists. Seriously wishing this bag made it home with me. I opted to change into a comfy romper for the day of exploring!

First, let me say Happy Friday! I am so incredibly thankful for all your support this week. Your feedback around this week’s posts and questions have been SO amazing to read. I am truly so glad that I am able to empower you through my NYFW experiences and educate you to make the right decision in the future! There’s nothing more exciting than to know that I’m giving you the tools you need to grow your brand. If you have missed any of the posts, you’ll have a chance to catch during this weekend’s short break here: ONE. TWO. THREE. FOUR. We will resume for the final two days on Monday!

I think its natural for us to have a hard time releasing control and struggle with the fact that you don’t know whats going to happen next. I know I do every single day. But you must know that when it comes to Fashion Week, expect the unexpected. You can do your part and be as organized and prepared as possible, but there is always, and I mean always, going to be something that comes up. Think you have the most perfect outfits picked out, ordered and on its way to your doorstep and it gets stuck in transit? Have a back up plan or allow time to swing by the mall before your flight out. RSVP to a show and your flight gets delayed? Don’t worry, there will be plenty more! Running late and miss your blo appointment and your hair looks a hot mess? Stop by the TRESemme tent for a quick pick me up. Getting a ton of last minute invites and don’t know how to organize? Bring your planner and use the Fashion GPS app I told you about. Remain professional, be calm and have fun! This is a business trip for most of you, so try to cram in as much as possible to make the most of it. And don’t forget to snap photos, your readers want to live vicariously through you!

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, Monday morning on NYFW I woke up sick! It was absolutely horrible with a busy day ahead of us. Thanks to my friends at TRESemme, they were able to give me a ‘Nicole Miller’ runway inspired up-do, and paired with my oversized sunnies, I was able to mask how bad I felt! Alas, we headed off to the Concept Korea, an amazing show were designers are hand selected to introduce Korean fashion and culture to Fashion Week. Afterwards we set off to a completely different part of town hoping to make it to Lela Rose. Shows were notorious for starting late, but we were pushing it arriving just seconds before they started. Tulips were hanging from the ceiling while floral appliqué, fringe and pleated details moved down the runway. Beautifully colored silhouettes perfect for a wedding, but subtle pieces were integrated with a little more edge. After a quick lunch and an outfit change, we headed off to the Julie Vos showroom to check out their beautiful statement pieces. I wanted everything, so classic but affordable and luxurious! I loved being able to learn about the line and stories that inspired the pieces.I hope you have enjoyed the first five days of my NYFW trip. Please feel free to leave any questions or comments below. I’d love to be able to continue to answer as many as possible. Have a great weekend and be sure to come back Monday for the final two days! xx